Rev Rogers Govender, Dean of Manchester, comforted Saffie's dad before the service

Saffie's mum Lisa (far right) alongside her daughter's coffin

Saffie's brother Xander appeared to wipe away a tear from his eye as he followed his sister's wicker casket into the cathedral

He said: “As you leave the cathedral today, try and be a little bit more like Saffie – ambitious, good-humoured, loving and passionate.

“The world will truly be a better place.”

Video messages from Saffie’s friends and teachers were played to the funeral in which they recalled their memories of her.

The Very Rev Rogers Govender said 22 bees were to be placed in the furniture of the cathedral as a memorial to the victims of the bombing.

He asked Mrs Roussos to hold one of the model bees as he dedicated it to Saffie.

He said the service was a “poignant moment” for Saffie’s family but also for the people of Manchester.

Her rose-covered wicker coffin was carried into the cathedral by friends and family as her mum Lisa – who was seriously injured in the attack – approached the service in a wheelchair before standing to walk alongside her daughter for the last time.

Aided by a family member, Saffie's mum, who has been discharged from hospital to attend the service walked into the church

A message from the family read 'we would like to thank you for being here today with us and for all your love and support'

She emerged from the lead car, refusing the offer of a wheelchair, instead pausing, limping, but determined to walk into the cathedral for her daughter’s service, watched by dozens of well-wishers standing outside.

Her right arm in a sling and hand bandaged up, she carried a red rose in her other hand.

Saffie’s father, Andrew, 43, nodded to his son, Xander, 10, and his wife, who replied with a weak smile.

Her dad Andrew was comforted by Rev Rogers Govender, Dean of Manchester before the service.

Saffie, along with 21 others – seven of them children – died in the terror attack as fans streamed out of the venue following an Ariana Grande concert on May 22.

He than became a pall bearer and along with five others carried his daughter inside the cathedral.

Hundreds of mourners were already inside, with many clutching single roses in memory of Saffie.

The youngster was a huge fan of the US singer and had got tickets for the show as a Christmas present from her parents.

Her family say she was “happy and elated” as she left show with her sister and mother when suicide bomber Salman Abedi detonated his homemade bomb packed with nuts and bolts in the Arena foyer.

Saffie died of multiple injuries.

The family invited anyone touched by her death to attend the service to celebrate Saffie’s short life and to take a single rose in her memory should they wish to take flowers.

The service was held at Manchester Cathedral, just yards from the scene of the attack

Saffie received the concert tickets as a Christmas present from her mum and dad

Crowds gathered ahead of the funeral to pay tribute to the eight-year-old

Mourners arriving ahead of the service

Her older sister Ashlee Bromwich, 26, was also injured and her mother, Lisa Roussos, 48, was left with extensive injuries and taken to hospital in a life-threatening condition.

After she regained consciousness her first words were “She’s gone, isn’t she?” her husband Andrew said.

Speaking publicly for the first time on July 4, on what would have been Saffie’s ninth birthday, Mr Roussos, 43, said: “We’ve lost everything. We have, we’ve lost everything, because life will just never be the same.”

Mr Roussos, who also has a son, Zander, 10, described his daughter as a girl who wanted to be famous, loved the limelight, and singing and dancing in excitement, counted the days down to seeing her pop idol performing in Manchester.

In Tarleton, the village where Saffie and her brother went to school, streets were festooned with pink ribbons tied to gate posts and lampposts as a mark of remembrance, and a short service will also be held in the local church on Wednesday.

Balloons with Saffie's name were displayed outside

Mourners were asked to bring a single red rose in tribute

Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham arriving at the service

Coaches have been laid on by a local firm to take people from the village and its surroundings, to pay their respects at the funeral in Manchester, but some traumatised schoolfriends of Saffie’s will attend the local service.

Chris Upton, headteacher of Tarleton Community Primary School, where Saffie was a pupil, described her as “simply a beautiful little girl”.

A police investigation into the terror attack on May 22 is still ongoing.